Geography
Rivers Ganges River The Ganges River starts in the Himalayan Mountains and flows through India and Bangladesh before it flows out to the Bay of Bengal. It runs for about 1,569 miles. It is the most important river to the Indian subcontinent, as it runs through India's most fertile areas. Huang He (Yellow) River The Huang He River starts in the Tibetan Plateau. It then flows east, where it empties into the Yellow Sea. This is the second-longest river in China, flowing for 3,395 miles. It is nicknamed for the yellow silt it carries, which creates nutrient-filled topsoil for farmers. It is an important area in Chinese culture. Chinese civilization began in the central area of the Huang He's river basin. Indus River The Indus River starts in the Himalayan Mountains. It then runs through India, then Pakistan, after which it empties into the Arabian Sea. The Indus River is 1,988 miles long. Some of the richest farming areas in the region are along its banks. It provides water for one of the biggest irrigation systems on Earth. Mekong River The Mekong River begins in the Tibetian Plateau. It flows south through China, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. After that, it empties into the South China Sea. It flows for about 2,703 miles. The Mekong has some of the richest farming land in the region on its banks. Arguably the most important crop there, rice, is grown along the Mekong. Yangtze (Chang Jiang) River The Yangtze River begins in the Tibetan Plateau, where it flows out to the East China Sea. The river is the longest in China and the third longest in the world. The Yangtze and Huang He Rivers are conjoined by one of the oldest canal systems in the world, the Grand Canal. Some parts were built over 2,000 years ago. Bays Bay of Bengal The Bay of Bengal is a part of the Indian Ocean. It has India to its west and Myanmar and Thailand to its east. Many notable rivers flow into the Bay, including the Ganges. Seas Sea of Japan The Sea of Japan is a small sea bordered to the north by Russia, the west by the Korean Peninsula, and the southeast by Japan. It is an arm of the Pacific Ocean between the Asian continent and Japan. Yellow Sea The Yellow Sea is a sea between China and the Korean Peninsula. The Yellow River empties into the water here. China Sea There are 2 China Seas; the East China Sea and the South China Sea. The East China Sea is a sea in the Pacific Ocean. It has Taiwan to its south, Japan to its east, and China to the west. The South China Sea is a sea also in the Pacific Ocean. It has Malaysia to its south, Vietnam to its west, the Phillippines to its east, and China to the north. Deserts Gobi Desert The Gobi Desert is the largest desert in all of Asia. It covers a large portion of Mongolia and some of northern China. The surface of the Gobi Desert is covered with sand and rock. It has thus earned the nickname "Shamo", which means "sand desert". The temperature here is incredibly polar. Temperatures can be extremely hot or extremely cold, depending on the time of day. Takla Makan Desert The Taklimakan Desert lies between two mountain ranges in northwestern China. It is 600+ miles in length, making it one of the longest deserts in the world, and the largest in China. Giant sand dunes cover 85% of its surface. Mountain Ranges Himalayan Mountains The Himalayas lie along the northern edge of the Indian subcontinent and form China’s southern border. This mountain range stretches for about 200 miles. The Himalayan mountain range is the world’s highest mountain region. 9 out of 10 of the world’s highest mountains are located here, including Mt. Everest, which is the highest. It has thus earned the nickname “The Roof of the World” because of the area’s high altitudes. Peninsulas Korean Peninsula The Korean Peninsula is a rugged peninsula that extends out of northeastern China into the area between the Yellow Sea and the Sea of Japan. Since 1948, the peninsula has been divided into North Korea and South Korea. Before this, it was a single country named Korea.